Strategic Planning

In the nonprofit world, we’re always on the search for new donors. We direct vast resources toward reaching the public to create fresh connections—and we should! Not only is it necessary, but it’s exciting to spread your organization’s message, especially so when when a potential donor shows interest...

Volunteer management best practices have changed as volunteer expectations and the reach of nonprofit organizations evolve. That said, the ultimate goal has always been, and will always be, to provide great experiences to volunteers and impact the community in an organized and efficient way...

Nearly every business strives to operate with low overhead. Because nonprofit organizations rely on donations and grant money, rather than traditional sales, it's even more critical for these companies to keep spending to a minimum. While it may seem challenging—perhaps even downright impossible—to balance your budget in a way that keeps your organization afloat, following a few…

Raising awareness is in the top five things every nonprofit organization wants. Or so they tell me. What they don’t know is how to not be the best kept secret in your community...

As we scroll through headlines and highlights triumphantly displayed on our social media feeds, it’s hard to feel that we who answer phones, enter gift records, clean office dishes and chip away at “To-Do” lists will ever arrive at greatness. Can you recall the feeling that, although your nonprofit has a meaningful mission, your workweek just feels like uneventful routines and ordinary tasks?...

In a recent blog, we wrote about the new tax bill that doubles the standard deduction, effectively reducing the number of taxpayers who itemize deductions from 30 percent to 5 percent, according to experts. That’s a decrease in roughly 30 million households...

The ongoing quest for funding can often feel like navigating a psychological minefield of cultural complexities and politics. Indeed, there were times I felt completely in the dark during the first few years that I was trying to get our ocean nonprofit Beneath the Waves off the ground and evolve from a small, grassroots organization.…

Filling a seat and collecting a paycheck aren’t enough for the new generation of nonprofit employees. With Millennials representing the largest group of Michigan’s 430,000 nonprofit sector employees, their employers need to pay attention to what will attract and retain this growing sector, said Bill Gesaman, strategic growth officer with the Michigan Nonprofit Association.  Gesaman…

One of the most dreaded moments of being a nonprofit founder or social entrepreneur can be the moment you realize you're out of funding. Whether it was a grant that didn't come through or a fundraising strategy that never took off, it's a scary feeling. Funding, for businesses and nonprofits alike, is the fuel of…

First, some bad news: Early-stage funding is harder to come by than it used to be. The seed-funding market has collapsed, with seed deals dropping by nearly 50 percent by some estimates, since 2014. Venture capitalists are putting more money into later-stage deals, leaving early-stage startups scrambling to grab investors’ attention. The good news is that…